Life 1:1

Snakekit felt the familiar softness of a moss nest beneath his form. He marveled slightly at its springiness. It had been quite a while since he last had one. Taking a moment to observe his surroundings, Snakekit noted his denmates. There was a golden queen with a very newborn black and white kit. There were five other kits. Two of which were visibly bulkier than the other three. Snakekit had seen similar situations before. Occasionally when a large litter is born, a kit or two are far more developed than the others. It generally doesn't change much besides giving those kits a bit of a head start.

Snakekit gave himself a stretch, feeling out his current size and form. He was a bit on the smaller side than usual. Taking a moment to groom, Snakekit noted his still had a good deal of kit fuzz. Generally, that was a sign he was a bit younger than he expected. Ultimately, Snakekit shrugged it off. Sometimes things carry over from his last life. Age was apparently one of them. An electric feeling shot down Snakekit's spine as he stretched it out. The pain point began exactly where Brokenstar had broken his spine before. He winced briefly as he gingerly relaxed his muscles.

"You've got to be more careful Snakekit. You know you're not supposed to stretch out your neck like that ever since you had that fall." The golden queen mewed.

Snakekit had long since given up on trying to find the stories of his new bodies. Whenever a wound carried over, there was always some kind of story that explained its origin, but they were always deliberately vague, likely caused by an accident. There was never substance to the story or even proof that such event happened at all. It all was a strange effect dictated by his nebulous immortality. Snakekit had never been able to track down how or why whenever he was reborn that others seem to remember him kindly but vaguely.

"Welp, it's time to get moving." Thought the strange kit. Every time he'd been reborn, the day he awoke was the one he'd begin training for an adulthood he'd never reach. Snakekit had long since stopped crying for the unattainable goal. Today was a new day, a new life, and Snakekit planned to enjoy it as much as possible.

It had been a few days since Firepaw had joined Thunderclan. He'd been diligent in his goal of learning about the clan. He knew all the elders' names already, and he'd gotten to meet the many kits in the nursery, which made the leopard spotted kit that just left the nursery all the stranger. The kit seemed jovial in nature, and somehow each passing warrior seemed to know and care about them.

"Hey Snakekit. I know it's time for your apprentice ceremony, but be careful with that neck. You sprained it pretty bad in that fall." Darkstripe mewed to the kit, which was very strange. Darkstripe wasn't the type to get friendly with someone young.

"Aw. Thanks for caring. I'll be careful." The odd kit mewed with a clear grin on his face.

Bluestar, seemingly summoned at the small voice, made her appearance from the leader's den. "As I live and breathe, Snakekit, it is good to see you. Come into my den so we can chat." She mewed in a strangely friendly tone. It was not the tone one takes when conversing with a kit. Rather, it was one she often used to chat with Whitestorm. This perplexed Firepaw since he was now positive he'd never heard of this kit before. He decided to eavesdrop on whatever Bluestar planned to discuss with the odd kit. He wasn't the only one who noticed the abnormality of that kit.

Tigerclaw had just finished a morning patrol when he noticed Darkstripe conversing with a kit he'd never seen before. What shocked him most was how attentive Darkstripe was towards the kit. It was totally unlike Darkstripe. He needed some answers.

"So, you seem awfully nice to that kit." Tigerclaw mewed, trying to bring up the topic subtly.

"I mean sure. Snakekit's had it rough after that fall, can't even stretch his neck out without it causing him pain. Despite that, he's still keeping that upbeat attitude. He's also quite the clever kit. It's a shame I've got Dustpaw, because I wouldn't mind mentoring him." Darkstripe mewed with an uncharacteristic amount of affection.

Tigerclaw was positive he'd never seen this kit before, but Darkstripe spoke of him as if he'd been around a long time. It threw him for a loop. He needed to know more. How had this kit somehow escaped his attention all this time, or had he somehow influenced the mind of all the cats around here? How soon would he be enthralled to whatever was going on? He needed more information.

"Remind me, who is Snakekit's mother?" Tigerclaw tested.

Darkstripe's eyes seemed to fog over a moment as he got lost in thought. He was silent for a number of seconds before he snapped out of his trance. "I'm surprised you don't remember Tigerclaw. You were there. We found him out by Fourtrees completely alone. He wasn't even a moon old. Despite that, we had proof he'd been out there several days. Little fighter, he was. We had to take him in."

Tigerclaw backed off, slightly afraid of whatever just happened. He decided to once again test this strangeness but this time on Longtail. When he asked of Snakekit's origins, Longtail gave the exact same story as Darkstripe, except there wasn't that strange freeze. Tigerclaw did not understand what was going on. Regardless, he needed to keep a close eye on Snakekit.

Within the silence of the leader's den, Bluestar let out a sigh. "It's been a long time Snakekit. I haven't seen you since Redtail was Redpaw. I still remember all those strange stories, or lives, as you called them went. Seeing you here again, I now believe they had some merit. Either way, it is great to see an old friend return." Bluestar mewed.

Firepaw, listening in from outside, tilted his head in confusion. Lives? Old friend? Each second around Snakekit seemed to cause more questions.

"It really has been a while Bluestar. It's great to see that you've stepped into your leadership role rather well, though it is a shame to see all the grey on your muzzle. I'm at least glad that you remembered me. Sometimes in a life I don't get that luxury. Regardless, who did you hear whispered? I'm dying to know who I'll be helping this time around." Snakekit mewed, overemphasizing the word 'dying'.

"You know I don't like that humor Snakekit. It hurts to know a friend has to go through that so often. If I knew how to help you, I would." Bluestar mewed apologetically.

"Don't worry about it Blue. It's just part of my nature. Even when I'm not here, you'll know I'm somewhere out there. At least take joy in that. As much as I want this… thing to end, I'm going to live my life to the fullest. Now spit it out Blue. Who's getting old Snakey to harass them?" Snakekit mewed in a humorous tone.

Bluestar paused a moment before huffing. "It's Firepaw…" She mewed slowly.

"An apprentice!" Snakekit answered in shock. "I don't think I've ever had that happen. Hopefully you can come up with a mentor for me or something. You already know I'm pretty much trained, so give me to someone you think could be taught how to teach."

Bluestar was quiet for a moment before answering. "I think I have someone in mind, but I've got to ask, how was this cycle?"

"Had some good times and some bad times. Usually, I try to avoid directly speaking about the immediate previous life, but I didn't even last a day in my last one. Shame too. Shadowclan is usually one of my favorites." The kit answered offhandedly.

"Shadowclan!" Bluestar growled, as if something had caused her the utmost offense.

"Easy Blue. I've long since given up on the idea of revenge. It always ends poorly. How about we move onto something lighter. Tell me about this Firepaw. How can I help him?" Snakekit soothed.

Bluestar soon devolved into telling stories about Firepaw's current progress and his seeming connection to a prophecy. Firepaw, who was still listening in, was certainly filled with questions, but it seemed that this Snakekit was relatively benign given his clearer history with Bluestar. He wondered how he'd come to know Snakekit going forward.